GREENVILLE, S.C. — A four-run seventh inning propelled the UAB baseball team (12-3) to a 13-12 nail-biting victory against Cornell (3-4) on the second day of the 2025 First Pitch Invitational at Fluor Field in Greenville, S.C., on Saturday afternoon.
 
Seven of UAB's nine starters scored at least one run in the win. Logan Braunschweig, Todd Clay, and Tyler Waugh each recorded two hits for the Blazers, while Braunschweig and Clay both had a double and two RBI.
 
Colin Daniel struck out seven Cornell batters in four-plus innings of work, allowing two runs on five hits and not issuing any walks. CJ Ellis earned his first victory of the season by pitching 1.1 innings of relief. Ryan Olson recorded his fourth save, striking out two while facing the minimum number of batters.
 
Senior two-way player Ryan Porter made a notable impact upon his return to the starting lineup, going 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI, contributing as one of five Big Red players with multiple hits.
 
Joining Porter in having multi-hit games were senior left fielder John Quinlan (2-for-6, two RBI), sophomore catcher Mark Quatrani (2-for-4, home run, two RBI), sophomore shortstop Kevin Hager (2-for-4, double, three RBI), and sophomore second baseman Owen Carlson (2-for-4 with an RBI).
 
Sophomore left-handed pitcher Huxley Holcombe delivered an impressive performance in his first start of the season, pitching into the sixth inning and allowing five runs (three earned) on seven hits over 5.1 innings. Holcombe struck out two Blazer hitters and issued one walk.
 
Senior left-handed pitcher William Jaun suffered his second consecutive loss as he issued two walks to start the Blazers' four-run seventh inning.
 
Holcombe and Daniel kept their opponents in check in the first three innings, allowing just three hits and four baserunners combined. Cornell's southpaw hurler retired seven consecutive batters at one point, sparked by an inning-ending double play that capped UAB's half of the first inning.
 
Both teams exchanged runs in the fourth inning, starting with an RBI double from Clay, followed by an overturned infield RBI single by Hunt after a challenge from the Blazers' coaching staff. Cornell halved its deficit with a one-out RBI single by Porter. The Big Red threatened to score following Porter's hit and a UAB fielding error, but Daniel prevented further damage by recording a strikeout and a flyout with the bases loaded.
 
Quatrani gave Cornell a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, crushing a two-run home run into the courtyard of the apartments overlooking Fluor Field in the left-center gap.
 
UAB answered Quatrani's home run with a six-run sixth inning to take an 8-3 lead. Three of the runs resulted from bases-loaded walks, while the other three were scored on a wild pitch, an RBI single by Gavin Lewis Jr., and a hit by pitch drawn by Clay with the bases loaded.
 
The Blazers' five-run lead was short-lived as the Big Red also plated six runs in the home half of the sixth to take a 9-8 lead. Cornell's first five batters all reached safely, featuring a two-RBI single from Quinlan and a groundout with the bases loaded from Jensen that narrowed UAB's lead to 8-6. Hager restored Cornell's lead with a bases-clearing, two-out double down the right-field line.
 
After drawing three walks to lead off the seventh, UAB scored a run on a fielding error on an infield fly popup. Following a hit by pitch that loaded the bases again, a pair of fielder's choices gave the Blazers a 12-9 advantage.
 
Senior designated hitter Kyle Musser cut the Big Red's deficit to 12-10 with an RBI groundout in the bottom of the seventh inning, before UAB regained its two-run lead with a two-out RBI single by Camden Hayslip in the eighth.
 
Cornell did not go down without a fight as the Big Red mounted an eighth-inning rally, highlighted by Porter roping an RBI double down the left-field line and Carlson hitting a sacrifice fly.
 
GAME NOTES
• Saturday was the first-ever meeting between Cornell and UAB and the fourth-ever contest against an American Athletic Conference (AAC) opponent. The Big Red is now 0-4 all-time against AAC opposition.
 
• Porter's three-hit performance was his most hits in a game since the first game of a doubleheader against Penn on April 28, 2023.
 
• Senior first baseman Max Jensen extended his on-base streak to 25 games following his one-out single in the first inning.
 
UP NEXT
Cornell will wrap up play in the 2025 First Pitch Invitational on Sunday when it travels to Rock Hill, S.C., to take on Winthrop (8-6) with a 1 p.m. first pitch at Founders Field. Senior right-handed pitcher Chris Ellison (0-0, 8.31 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound for the Big Red against the Eagles' right-hander Brayden Gilley (1-1, 9.00 ERA). Game action will be broadcast on ESPN+.